Gold extended gains in Asian trade Friday after concerns over global economic recovery prompted safe haven buying.

Gold for immediate delivery was seen trading at $1215.17 an ounce at 12.00 noon Singapore while US Gold for December delivery was at $1,216.73 an ounce on the comex division of Nymex.

Analysts said the precious yellow metal is likely to gain further as investors tend to move away from riskier assets compared to bullion as clouds of economic concerns remained.

US employment data released Thursday showed plenty of clues regarding world's largest economy's health while U.S. consumer confidence and consumer prices are also due out later on Friday.

The US Labor Department reported on Thursday that last week's initial jobless claims increased by 2000, to 484,000, which is the highest level in six month and analysts previously expected the number to decline.

The upbeat data highlighted the ongoing weakness in the US labor market, and added to investors' darkening view of US economic prospects.

Meanwhile, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust , said on Friday its holdings rose for the second consecutive day. It held 1,286.699 tonnes by August 12, up from 1,285.787 tonnes on August 11.

On Thursday, gold futures closed at their highest in six weeks as concerns about the economy boiled over.

Gold for December delivery, the most active contract, rose $17.50, or 1.5%, to $1,216.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Silver tracked gold's gain, recapturing the $18-an-ounce mark to close 0.9% higher at $18.06 an ounce

Gold